Experiential Brand Launch

CHALLENGE

GALA Games reached out to VOLO Events Agency to host an inaugural and epic experiential event in Las Vegas to celebrate GALA’s rise as one of the world’s top next-generation digital (Web3) gaming companies – “Into The Galaverse”. GALA also wanted to excite their fan-based community with previews of their upcoming products and initiatives. GALA challenged VOLO’s CEO and executive producer, Charles Marto, to design, scale, budget, construct and deliver – from scratch –a completely original and immersive brand engagement event so extraordinary that it would not only define GALA for years to come, but also leave a lasting impression on their attendees.

All of this with only 54 days from ideation to execution.

• General Sessions: Design, produce and stage 4 sessions over two days with professional host(s), multiple executive presenters & guests, multiple live performances with original choreography, bespoke costuming, immersive visual projection with 3D content, custom animations and theatrical special effects
• Scenic & Dimensional: Craft five distinct theme-park-quality immersive “worlds” each to transform GALA’s digital games into a series of live, on-stage performances
• Agenda Design, Management & Visualization: Balance multiple layers of simultaneous shows and crews, each with cycling audience segments across the event landscape – each requiring discrete stage direction and sophisticated, next-generation wide screen imagery
• Webcast: Design and produce a network-quality live-streaming global webcast for day three of the event
• Broadcast Arena: Design and build a fully operational e-sports gaming environment within one of the immersive worlds to support the webcast
• Book, Produce & Manage: 15 A-Level celebrity acts for two days and two nights of live concert entertainment in multiple event locations
• Venue: The bold plan required 90,000 sq ft of event space, hotel room block, VIP catering, food & beverage for 700 attendees, and over 500 staff, talent and crew –at a major Las Vegas hotel & casino campus – on less than two months notice!

SOLUTION

Venue – Location, Location, Location

VOLO leveraged their long-standing relationships in the hospitality industry to renegotiate the master plan and accommodations with expanded terms for the necessary space at The Aria Hotel and Casino, which was sold out prior to VOLO’s engagement! VOLO succeeded in securing the relocation of conflicting events and also the necessary room nights for GALA guests at various 4 and 5 star hotels within the Aria City Center Campus.

The Show Must Go On – And It Did, In Spectacular Fashion!

A “hub and spoke” design was created for the overall event configuration, with the hub as the host location for the 4 general sessions, product reveals, NFT offerings, stage performances, the daytime celebrity entertainment and five (5) after hours A-list DJ performances. The hub featured a large stage with a massive, curved, high-resolution LED wall supported by a 360-degree screen-surround.

Four all-original dance numbers were orchestrated by VOLO’s Fosse and MTV VMA award winning choreography team as interstitial segments within the hub general sessions – linking brief message segments, and sustaining audience energy and excitement throughout.
Each of five spokes feeding out from the central hub led to one of five GALA digital game “world” creations. VOLO deployed a multi-disciplinary strategy to devise gaming “activations” that would literally bring GALA’s digital games to life as real-time, real-world, fully interactive and immersive experiences. Attendees were drawn into each game experience through a combination of theatrical 3-D scenic design, live-cast performance, custom animation, high-definition motion media and visual effects featuring 4K video, a 3D graphics gaming engine [Unreal Engine (UE)] – and an audio feast of more than 2000 original and artfully curated music tracks for both the hub and “worlds” activities.

Scenic & Dimensionals – Worlds of Difference

Bringing five digital game worlds to life required far more than traditional event staging. It demanded the kind of specialized craft and attention to detail typically found on motion picture sets, sound stages and theme parks. VOLO’s elite team of Emmy Award winning set designers and craftsmen fabricated worlds that were so “real,” and so true to the games they represented, that even GALA’s game designers were overwhelmed with their mastery.

Five different worlds –and the hub – were designed and built:

• Townstar – themed as a Texas dance hall and honky-tonk bar. Townstar featured a full stage, seating for nearly 65 people and a full, working bar, complete with Townstar-branded beer.

• Echoes of Empire – The command deck of a spaceship – where guests were immersed in an on-stage space battle and mutiny – and participated with the performers to gain victory.

• Mirandus – A medieval themed tavern located at the end of a winding forest path. Complete with real forest scent and period- music, Mirandus provided the perfect immersion for guests to meet their favorite legendary game designers while sipping beverages from tankards served at an authentic bar.

• Spider Tanks – A full e-Sports arena complete with 18 competitor gaming stations, play by play broadcast and a full sized, robotic chicken (a character from the GALA game)

• Dungeon and Dragons – a fully equipped Dungeons and Dragons room featuring a smoke-blowing life sized Dragon and tables cast with professional costumed Dungeon Masters, prepared to take visitors on a mini-adventure.

• The Hub – The central area from which all the worlds branched. The hub featured seating for 700 guests, a full stage and 360-degree immersive screens.

RESULT

“We had expectations – and they were very high. But I have to say that VOLO has blown my mind!”

Sarah Buxton – GALA COO

From imagination to flawless delivery of one of the most intricate and expansive events ever attempted in the long and storied history of Las Vegas – on any schedule – would have been a legitimately stunning achievement. Pulling it all together in 54 days was simply unprecedented!

The event wildly exceeded GALA’s revenue expectations, set them apart as the brand leader in the gaming industry – and secured the loyalty of their core audience for a generation.

Only VOLO’s relentless planning, attention to detail and “no-nonsense,” flow-through project management process could deliver an event of this magnitude in such a short period of time. Charles Marto and his VOLO team crafted a brand-specific, theme-park-quality, immersive experience with four integrated general sessions, a 3-hour live webcast that generated more than 32,000 views and more renowned musical talent than most festivals – on time, and on-budget every step of the way!

True to our credo – VOLO lifts brands!

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